Iran's Airspace Closure Causes Global Flight Disruptions: What We Know
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Iran temporarily closed its airspace early Thursday, sparking a chain reaction of flight disruptions and reroutes across the globe. The move, attributed to military escalation and Tehran's crackdown on nationwide protests, led to significant delays and cancellations for airlines. According to government officials, the Tehran Flight Information Region (FIR) was closed to all flights at 3:45am IST, with only international civil flights arriving into or departing from Iran permitted with prior permission from the Iran Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The sudden closure had far-reaching operational implications for flights using air traffic service route G452, a critical airway for aircraft flying from north and west India towards Iran, the Gulf, Turkey, and onward to Europe. Long-haul international services from Indian metros were forced to reroute through Pakistan's airspace to avoid Iranian airspace. Air India acknowledged the impact of the airspace closure in a statement, citing safety concerns and the need for alternative routing. The airline apologized for the inconvenience caused to passengers and assured that their safety remained the top priority. The airspace was later reopened at 7:03am IST, with normal flight operations in the Tehran FIR resuming. The incident highlights the complexities and challenges of air travel in times of global uncertainty and conflict.
